The purpose of this notice is to clarify the research data sharing policy stated in PAR-07-020: Understanding and Promoting Health Literacy (R01) http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-07-020.html. The Announcement requires all applications to include a plan for sharing research data, or offer an explanation of why data sharing is not possible. However, this NIH policy applies only to applicants seeking funding of $500,000 or more in direct costs in any single year of the project period, or when responding to a FOA with a special data sharing requirement. There is no special data sharing requirement associated with this FOA. While a data sharing plan is always welcome, only applicants requesting direct costs above $500,000 in a single year are required to submit a plan for sharing data. The data sharing policy is available at http://grants.nih.gov/grants/policy/data_sharing. When proposed costs suggest a plan is needed, reviewers will assess either the reasonableness of the data sharing plan, or the explanation offered for not sharing the research data. However, reviewers will not factor the proposed data sharing plan into the determination of scientific merit or the priority score.

For other FOA inquires, please contact the administrator at either AHRQ or the relevant component of the NIH, as listed in Section VII, the Agency Contacts section of the FOA. These individuals welcome the opportunity to answer questions from potential applicants. Inquiries may fall into three areas: scientific/research, peer review, and financial or grants management issues. The FOA provides contacts for each of these areas. Prospective applicants are particularly encouraged to contact agency staff prior to application preparation, to determine if their proposal will fit within the scientific and budgetary priorities of that agency and of the R01 mechanism.